Does living in Orlando "ruin" Disneyworld for you?

[David R]

Maybe a little, but mostly because you end up knowing it like the back of your hand and you are not as easily blown away. You tend to be a little pickier about the state of rides, etc. You also become picky about crowds.

You also get to see CMs in a different light. Mostly because you run into them all over the city. I was at the grocery store the other day and there was a transportation CM buying groceries. At Dunkin Donuts today, a Photopass photographer was buying his breakfast. You know, it's just demystified.

That doesn't mean I don't go to the parks often, I do. Sometimes it's a couple times a week, sometimes it's once a month. I go, ride stuff, or walk around, spend anything from 2 to 4 hours there and then go home and do other things. I usually only spend a whole day at the parks if I have an out-of-town visitor.

 

[stargrazer]

I still love WDW as much as always, but I will admit some of the mystery has worn off but only because I, like Dave, know some of the rides like the back of my hand.

That said, magic is what you make of it, so I enjoy doing the thrill rides, some of the shows, certain foods and just the overall ambiance. I still haven't done it all but I'm working on it, including stuff I would pass in a heartbeat if I were a yearly visitor.

Nowadays I get my thrills watching other visitors and 'making magic'...giving away fastpasses, buying ice cream for the person behind me, etc etc.

Being there allows me to feel like a kid again, I'm planning the next trip the day after we leave usually.

Now husband...THAT'S a different story!

 

[safetymom]

I live 12 miles from the parks and still love it. We moved here 4 years ago. Last year I went to the parks 75 times. I still haven't seen everything.

 

[Special_K]

Thanks everyone. Still trying to convince the kid brother that this is the way to go. Disneyworld started out as MY addiction and now my brother has become a Disney stalker. I swear if he ever has twins he's going to name them Riverside and French Quarter.

 

[nbodyhome]

Thanks everyone. Still trying to convince the kid brother that this is the way to go. Disneyworld started out as MY addiction and now my brother has become a Disney stalker. I swear if he ever has twins he's going to name them Riverside and French Quarter.

One of my favorite things is that I can go vacation elsewhere without feeling I'm missing Disney.

 

[Tiggerific04]

DF and I have entertained the idea of moving to the Orlando area, but we haven't had any luck in finding a decent place to live. Does anyone have any suggestions for a nice apartment complex that would be convenient for traveling to/from Disney? I'd like to be close enough that I would have the option of working there. I've tried looking online and it seems like everything is rated very poorly because of crime.

 

[CDSTapisRouge]

I have lived in Florida since 1982 (82-95 in Clearwater, 95-present in the Orlando area). The magic never dies. We don't go to WDW all that much, but we do Disneyland California and the Cruises All the time. We have gone to Disneyland Paris and we are DVC members as well... Most of our vacations revolve around Disney just like everyone else

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) We like Orlando
. . . own a home in the Orlando area, and vacationed frequently
. . . we are 15-20 minuted from WDW West Gate
. . . did the "semi retired" routine and was a full-time CM (now a Seasonal CM)
. . . went back to the Real World to be Pres/CEO of a company
2) Living/working in Orlando takes a little of the "edge" off the magic.
3) But is also helps, as we don't rush when we go to a park.
4) If we miss it now, we catch it the next time.

NOTE: I do find myself going to DL and DLP more than WDW. I have plants in Tijuana and France, so I have an opportunity once per month to catch either park. We are also going to build an operation near Orlando, so now I get to visit three parks frequently. Now, could Beijing use one of our operations . . . ? ? ?

 

[raammartin]

I'm glad to hear that for most of you living so close didn't lessen the Disney magic any. We'd like to move to FL and the beaches in the next few years.

 

[inkkognito]

Kinda depends what you mean by "ruin." We live in Celebration and can hear Illuminations every night...it never gets old to me! Sometimes we drive through Disney property on our way to the store or wherever, just because we "can." We love to just casually decide to run over to one of the hotel restaurants for dinner on a whim. I have a Celebration blog, and this particular entry sums up my feelings:

http://celebrationfl.blogspot.com/2006/01/happy-anniversary.html

But it has ruined the parks in some small ways...for example, I will NOT wait more than 15 minutes for a ride now because I have gotten so spoiled with being able to go during the off-season. Also, we have Premier Passes for Universal, which offer front of the line access after 4 p.m., so that has made me even less tolerant of Disney lines. In the peak season, we usually go early, get a FastPass, have a snack and people watch till its time for our ride, then leave just as the crowd is getting insane.

Overall, I LOVE living near WDW.

 

[DisneyGurlie]

You forgot you don't have to worry about the money!

 

[resol37]

I don't live in Florida, but I did the WDW College Program in spring of 2004. I worked, lived, and played at WDW! It was only for a couple of months, but it never got old for me. There's so much to do at WDW - I actually missed a lot of stuff that I didn't know about (this was before I discovered the Disboards). I used to go just to people watch and grab some food.

 

[KristinBelle]

I live about 30 minutes from Disney and no it hasn't ruined it for me, it's better then ever.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) I think "ruined" is a harsh word.
2) Living close (about 20-minutes) has advantages and disadvantages.
3) Advantages
. . . with an annual pass, you can jump over for a few hours or a whole day
. . . if you miss a ride due to crowds, you catch it the next time
. . . you never feel rushed, or that you have to do "commando style"
. . . you can SLOWLY walk around and notice the small touches
4) Disadvantages
. . . it does take the "edge" off the magic, but it doesn't ruin it
. . . we no longer eat meals at WDW, other than a counter service *
. . . our shopping is less, since the merchandise doesn't change often
5) Over all, we still love Disney.

* We used to eat a lot at WDW, even though we knew there was a price penalty because it was a vacation resort. With the advent of DDP, we SELDOM EVER eat on site because the meals and menus are getting more plain and less unique. We can get more exciting meals at a better price within 3-5 minutes of Disney on Hwy-535 or Hwy-192.

 

[David R]

I agree with the restaurant comment. Except that we are more likely to eat at a table service than counter service. We are tired of the usual burger and chicken strips offered at every park in Orlando so we try to spice up our meals by sitting down at a nice place.

However, like you said, due to the DDP, the menus have become limited and boring. So now we eat less overall at the parks than before DDP. My favorite table service restaurant at any Orlando park is Mythos at IOA. The food is just great, even though the menu doesn't tend to change.

 

[fla4fun]

Not for me! I'm about 20 minutes away, and I still think it's great. There is a difference living here though. I don't go as often as I thought I would, and I still prefer to stay on property and really enjoy the resort, instead of just going for the day (although I do both). One thing I like is that we can see the fireworks from our house, so instead of fighting all the crowds on the big holidays, we just take a cold drink out on the deck and settle back for the show. I have a good friend who lives about 20 minutes the opposite direction and we often meet up at DTD on our days off for a little shopping and dining.

 

[Suzabell]

Living in Orlando does not "ruin" WDW for me at all!!! In fact, I appreciate it much more!!
I get to go when I want, I don't have to fight the crowds!! I get to enjoy the off peak season. I get to get a sneak peak at new attractions that are coming. When people that I know come to vist the world, I get to go with them and experience the magic thru their eyes!
I get to go to DTD to the movies whenever I want!! I am a pretty lucky gal!!
I love that I can go to the parks for just one ride and know that if there is a long line or if the fast pass is gone for the day, that I can come back another day to try since I am not on a vacation schedule.
Now don't get me wrong. when I lived in NY, I too was a planner and would make my lists and daily itinerary and make all of our ADR'S. I do miss those days, but I am happy that I am here close by to the magic. I am trying to accomplish getting my photo with each and every character!! For the first time in all of these years, this past Feb was the very first time that I EVER met ABU from Aladdin!! It was a great day!!! Magical indeed!!!

 

[WendyBirdGirl]

Living here is amazing.

It takes off all of the pressure of having to see everything in a day. For once, you can visit the parks without exhausting yourself. You can sit at the dinner table and say, "Wanna see Illuminations tonight?" You can look at a 60-minute line for Space Mountain and say, "Eh, we'll come back tomorrow."

Whenever I have visitors, I'm reminded of how EXHAUSTING it is to be a Guest. I've had it with exhaustion! It's way more fun to pick a few things and do them "whenever."

It's... AMAZING.

Plus you go to the parks so often that you come up with some really, really, really elaborate (yet effective!) strategies about how to avoid the crowds, the best spots to stand for parades, etc.

The only downside is that you have to put up with the ups and downs of crowds/tourists. It makes it harder to WANT to be in the park on a crowded day say, around Christmas, when you remember the wonderful-ness of how empty the park was in September. You start to lose patience for long lines.

 

[cleo]

Doesn't get at all boring for us and we never seem to 'lose the magic'. We can see the Wishes fireworks from our pool deck and, even though they show almost every night, we still stop and give a look. On good nights we can also see part of IllumiNations from one of the upstairs bedrooms.

We don't usually eat at the table service restaurants anymore unless we have visitors with us. But we do sometimes bike to Fort Wilderness for the lunch buffet or have dinner at one of the resort restaurants.

It's nice to be able to visit Disney, Universal, Busch and SeaWorld when the urge strikes, or when something new opens. We also love being able to see far more than 'just' the theme parks. There's a lot in Orlando to keep you busy and for us, the parks are just a part of that, not the whole package, so they don't get old because they aren't all we do.

Editing to add, the down-side is the driving. Even though we cut the 'tourists' a whole lot of slack (knowing they're starry-eyed and not paying attention), they are still a serious hazzard with some of the stunts they pull. It's like they left their brains back at the hotel and have no idea what the rules of the road are any more (and no, I'm not talking about just the overseas visitors!).

 

[cranbiz]

I don't think the magic is any less for me and I work there.

I love the fact that I can pop over for a couple of hours and not have to rush around. I still enjoy the characters, still play with them. No, the magic still exists for me even though I know what happens off stage.

Yes, I'm spoiled, I won't wait longer than 20 minutes for any attraction. I'll most likely renew my AP even though I'm a CM.

I too, tend to eat at CS locations more, but BOMA and Crystal Palace still hold a fond place in my heart and I still eat there.

Yes, I'm pickier about the conditions of some things in the parks but it doesn't ruin my experience. In fact , I'm still amazed at how we do it day after day.